Adelaide Marriott Hotel brings new life to city’s historic General Post Office
The new Adelaide Marriott Hotel is the crowning jewel in what has been a game-changing transformation over some 20 years of the historic General Post Office precinct in Adelaide’s CBD.
With its architectural design that pays homage to a bygone era, its contemporary and modern interior has seen this iconic South Australian landmark truly come to life.
At the precinct’s heart, is the colonial-era General Post Office (GPO) – a building that has graced its prime CBD location at 141 King William Street, overlooking Victoria Square / Tarntanyangga, since 1872.
Throughout its life, this treasured architectural landmark has undergone many changes. Some remain, like the addition of its heritage-listed New York entrance (1872 – 1893), while others, like an office tower built in the 1920s, do not.
Today, behind the exquisite freestone façade of the original Grand Postal Hall, a 14-storey contemporary cube-like tower rises dramatically, enveloping the 285 soundproof guestrooms and suites of the new Adelaide Marriot Hotel, and concluding the final stage in the GPO precinct’s stunning metamorphosis.
Baukultur, a contemporary architectural practice based in Adelaide, is behind this stunning rejuvenation.
Headed up by directors David Homburg, Chris Watkins, and Mariano De Duonni, as Principal Architects and Interior Designers, the team has worked to create a modern hotel that delivers the sophisticated setting synonymous with the flagship Marriott brand.
Baukultur’s bespoke design for the Adelaide Marriot Hotel is mid-century with a classic modernist twist, underpinned by distinct residential elements that imbue an overarching feeling of warmth and welcome into every space.
Meticulously referencing aspects of the GPO’s ornate original exterior and decor, the design champions the past while breathing new life into the building, facilitating connection across the lively streets and laneways of the wider GPO precinct, and bestowing a timeless new addition upon the Adelaide cityscape.
The 14-storey Marriott tower sits some 22 metres back from the GPO’s Victoria Tower, a prominent timepiece installed in 1876 on the corner of King William and Franklin Streets.
Adelaide Marriott general manager, Paul Gallop said: “The new Adelaide Marriott Hotel tower is a shimmering jewellery box that wraps itself within and around its heritage base, cantilevers over the plaza and the GPO itself, and support to its surroundings with a honey-toned façade that evokes a sense of nostalgia and immediate visual connection with the GPO’s distinct profile.”
The Adelaide Marriott Hotel’s mid-20th century-inspired internal fit-out echoes Baukultur’s approach to the exterior, paying homage to the GPO’s heritage without compromising comfort or sophistication.
In other, more nuanced displays, stories of the GPO itself are celebrated within a curated collection of multi-media artworks presented throughout guestrooms, the 126-seater Penny Blue restaurant, the 88-seat Exchange Lane bar, the executive lounge (M Club) and more than 762 square metres of meeting and event space on Level One.
What recruitment shortage? More than 800 applicants apply for role at Adelaide Marriott
Email the Travel Weekly team at traveldesk@travelweekly.com.au
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